Lewis Fry Richardson (1881–1953) was an extraordinary scholar. Trained as a physicist, he became world famous in two rather different fields, meteorology and peace research. Academic prizes have been named for him in both areas. He also made important contributions to psychology. My just-published edited volume reviews Richardson’s contributions to peace research and related disciplines… Read more »
Category: Peace Research
Pioneer and Patron of Social Science and Peace Research: A Portrait of Erik Rinde (1919–1994) by Lars Even Andersen
Erik Rinde (1919–1994), a portrait written by Lars Even Andersen The Norwegian version is available here (.pdf). Erik Rinde – Timeline 1919 Born 17 March 1919 1943 Cand. jur. degree (roughly equivalent to an LL.M.) conferred by the University of Oslo 1949 Founder of the International Sociological Association; serves as secretary general for the first four… Read more »
Peace with a Human Rights Perspective: Asbjørn Eide Interviewed by Helge Øystein Pharo
Asbjørn Eide, interviewed by Helge Øystein Pharo Former PRIO Director Asbjørn Eide was only seven years old when he experienced war at first hand. In a surprise attack on the morning of 9 April 1940, the Germans began to invade Norway. As a result, Norwegian forces in the Bergen area retreated eastwards towards Voss. At… Read more »
Opening Peace Research
This week, we’ll be marking International Open Access Week with a series of short blog posts on open access and open science at PRIO. Today, we kick off the series with a blog by Nils Petter Gleditsch. We asked Nils Petter – a long-standing cornerstone of the community here at PRIO – to reflect on… Read more »
Peace Is More Than the Absence of War: Inger Skjelsbæk Interviewed by Cindy Horst
Inger Skjelsbæk, interviewed by Cindy Horst We focus a lot more on conflict than we do on what peace actually is. What is it that creates well-being? What is it that makes you feel at ease in your own skin, in your own life, in your own sociopolitical context? What does it take? All narratives… Read more »
Managing Peace Researchers: Lene Kristin Borg and Grete Thingelstad in Conversation with Stein Tønnesson
Lene Kristin Borg and Grete Thingelstad in Conversation with Stein Tønnesson At a farewell lunch organized for PRIO Director Sverre Lodgaard at the end of his term in 1992, someone said that, under his leadership, PRIO had made a transition from anarchy to dictatorship. The speaker who said this expressed herself in favour of the dictatorship,… Read more »
A Book that Looks Like an Encyclopedia
Write about a book that has been particularly important for me? A difficult task! In those formative youthful years when one is attempting to shape one’s identity, in the profession as well as in society, many books and articles exert an influence – now in one direction, then in another. I could have mentioned Johan… Read more »
With Politicians Who Can’t Be Bothered to Read Peace Agreements, It’s No Wonder Brexit Negotiations Are Such a Mess
Like every peace settlement, the Good Friday Agreement is a compromise document, the result of a long and difficult bargaining process that should be properly understood.
Free Access at a High Price
Plan S.: PRIO would far rather pay fees to ensure that all our publications in subscription journals are made available via open access than be forced to publish our best research in lower quality journals. The new European Plan S – an open access (OA) policy for research results – is ambitious and radical. It… Read more »
Decolonization Gone off the Rails
This summer we have had the opportunity to read about the campaign to ‘decolonize academia’: the call to improve the representation of non-Western voices in the curricula of Norwegian educational institutions. The supporters of this campaign justify it on the basis that it will challenge ways of thinking in the sciences and humanities that were… Read more »